Tip Toes
by from-sabrina
Summary: In which Austin and Ally are stuck in an elevator together during a storm in the middle of a power outage. Set in the not-too-far-off future. AU; oneshot. For Kirsten.


**Pairing: Austin/Ally**  
**Prompt: Inspired partly by the song Tip Toes by Jayme Dee, suggested by one of my Twitter friends, Chelsea (Rauraholic on Twitter). Also, she's _sprinkleofgold_ here on FanFiction; go check her out!**  
**Notes: Erm... hi. I have a Tumblr now; from-sabrina. tumblr. c o m. **  
**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize and some things you don't. No copyright infringement intended.**

**Copyright 2012 LostAmongTheStars**

**This one goes out to Kirsten, kirstennr5 on Twitter and stopthisgirl here on FanFiction. Tonight's her last night before school starts, so I just thought I'd whip something up to keep her, y'know, alive.**

**AU- also, they're 20, 21-ish in this fic, so the content's a little more mature.**

* * *

_Beep. Beep. Beeeeeeeeep. Beep beep beep beep beep- SLAM!_

I groan, opening my eyes after forcing my alarm clock to kindly _shut the hell up_. Whoever said college was the best four years of your life was an idiot. Then again, the same person who said that probably said the same thing about high school, and look how true that's become. Not at all, that's how true it is. Thank god I'm in New York now, finally away from all those idiots at my high school in Miami. Granted, they weren't all idiots... my best friend, Trish, for one. She's in Columbia University now for Management, even though she was always lazy to an extreme growing up. I guess hard work really does pay off.

And that has been _Deep Thoughts with Ally Dawson at Way-Too-Early-in-the-Morning_.

Sighing, I get up and get ready, prepared to drag myself over to Julliard. I can't be happier that I got accepted, but the waking up early in the morning part really doesn't sit too well with me.

However, I have the constant, reassuring pitter patter of rain to keep me company while I groan and moan, I suppose.

* * *

Dressed and ready to go, twenty minutes later I find myself standing in front of the elevator, humming contentedly. Yes, early mornings suck, but I'm here, living out my dreams _and_ getting a degree.

The thought makes me smile, so when the elevator doors open, the drop in my mood (and my stomach, I'm ashamed to admit) is sudden. Guess who the only other person in the elevator is?

Austin Monica Moon.

Now, let me explain something to you: Austin Moon and I have somewhat of a history. Lately, most of that history has consisted of us shoving our tongues down each other's throats, but it's also been me seething mad at him for still going at it with other girls while he makes out with me after he's done with them. So yeah, it's safe to say there's a lot of unresolved sexual tension between the two of us.

But all I can do is keep my expression blank and step into the elevator, because Austin and I? We're done. Finished. Completely over with. Because I can't be his second choice; god knows I've been in that position far too many times and for far too long.

"Hi," says Austin softly. He probably thinks that if he uses the right words, he can sweet-talk his way out of this again. But no, not after how badly I was hurt and how bad our fight last Sunday had been.

So, I answer him primly, "Hello." And then turn my eyes to the display in the elevator that tells me which floor we're on. As we slowly lumber through the floors (I'm a college student; the building I live in isn't exactly The Hilton), I try to think of a time where Austin and I weren't explosive.

We met at Julliard. He was my rival in almost everything at that school; still is, in fact. In the beginning, we were friends simply because our friends were dating each other (his best friend Dez and Trish). Then, we got to know each other, and we got along swimmingly.

Then came New Year's Eve three months ago, when we were forced into a midnight kiss by our friends (long story). I was in the middle of cursing my friends when he suddenly leaned over and kissed me. I didn't hesitate to kiss him back, and soon there were wolf whistles and cheers surrounding us, but I was entirely too preoccupied with Austin's mouth to notice. In retrospect, I probably shouldn't have done that- Austin was a playboy, and I was a goody-two-shoes, but once I found out what he could do with that tongue of his... Well, I was too far gone.

After that lovely night, we got along a little _too_ swimmingly. Thus started the string of make-out sessions behind the columns of buildings at Julliard, down in the music storage rooms, in between classes, and many more scenarios that I don't care to bring up. We were never anything official, but after New Year's, I hadn't gone out with another guy or kissed another guy, so we might as well have been together.

At least, that's what _I_ thought. Then, two weeks ago, I find him sucking face with some other girl in the middle of the hallway. You can imagine my reaction, and boy, it wasn't pretty.

So, yeah. I kind of hate Austin Moon.

Throughout the duration of my thoughts, Austin has stayed silent, and I can practically feel the awkwardness in the air. Good. Let this be awkward, let this be uncomfortable; I can handle it. He deserves way more than just awkward and uncomfortable, I can tell you that much.

Suddenly, the elevator stops with a jolt, and I'm flung into Austin's arms. The lights in the elevator flicker for a second, then come back on. Quickly, I shove myself out of Austin's arms.

"What just happened?" I cry, because though I promised myself to be a cold, heartless bitch to him and give him the silent treatment, I didn't expect to be stuck in an elevator with him!

Austin, however, appears to be calm. "I don't know exactly, but I heard the owner talking about some kind of elevator problem, and the storm probably messed with the cables or something."

I wrinkle my nose at him. "You think the storm messed with the cables? That doesn't even make sense; are you just trying to look smart?"

He rolls his eyes. "No, I was trying to reassure you, but you want to know the truth? Fine. In reality, the power's probably gone out because of the storm. I'm surprised these lights are still on, actually." He points above to the lights in the ceiling, while I'm a little- no, a _lot_- taken aback at his concern.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding!" I exclaim, finally realizing what today was. "It's Tuesday; I've got my class in fifteen minutes and I'm stuck in a damn elevator!"

Austin shrugs coolly. "You're not going to make it. We're going to have to wait out the storm."

"Ugh!" I huff, throwing my book bag down on the ground and sliding down one of the wall of the elevator to place myself on the cold floor. "Can't we just call someone to get us out of here?"

Austin shakes his head, sagging down to the floor with me. "No cell service in here." He bangs one of the walls of the elevator resentfully, and I have to bite back a smile. Oh god, I hate him.

It's silent for the next ten minutes while I brood and sulk over my relationship with Austin. No guy's ever made me feel this _much_. Austin's like a hurricane- dangerously carefree and uncontrollable. I hate how I've been his second choice for two weeks, but that doesn't stop me from knowing that no one else could ever have this same effect on me. Unfortunately, my immense hate and disgust for him is often interrupted by his sweet moments, like the one that happens next.

Obviously after ten minutes with the power off in the enclosed box known as an elevator, the temperature would drop, and what with New York's finnicky March weather, it's always damp and cold. So, suffice to say, I'm freezing. Austin can tell, too; I'm visibly shivering.

"Here," he says gruffly, stripping off his leather jacket (the guy's a walking musician cliche) and draping it over my shoulders. I nod silently as a sign of my thanks, and he snorts, drawing me closer to him by the arm. "Only you would be wearing a dress and cardigan in March in New York, Ally." Looking down at my choice of footwear for the day, he snorts again. It's unattractive, and I tell him just that. "Whatever," he replies. "I can't believe you're wearing matching heels, too. It's pouring outside!"

I make a face, but snuggle deeper into him and his stupidly warm body. "The heels I can deal with. And I'm from Miami, Austin. It's always warm there."

"You're not in Miami anymore, have you realized that? And not everybody is like your asshole classmates back in Miami, either," he tells me sharply. Sighing, he fixes his head on top of mine, and for a second all I hear is the sound of our quiet breathing. Then he speaks up with, "The other day. Sunday. Our fight. I meant what I said, you know. It was true, that girl had forced herself on me! I was just about to shove her off, then you walked around the corner and saw."

I sigh, having predicted that we would have to have this talk sometime. I just never thought it'd be in an elevator in the middle of a power outage, but there's no time like the present, right? "I know. I could tell that that girl was throwing herself on you, but-"

Austin cuts me off incredulously. "You knew? Then why were you so mad at me on Sunday?"

"Because, what if it happens again, Austin? You've got a reputation, you know. Austin Moon, musician-slash-playboy extraordinaire. Maybe you're not really into me, maybe you're just here for the chase. But guess what, Austin? I can't have that. I can't be a second choice, I can't be a distraction. If you want there to be an us, then you're going to have to go all in, because I'm already in way over my head with you." I sound like a bitch, but this is the cold, harsh sting of reality. If I choose Austin and it turns out to be a huge mistake, I can't ever go back and change it, and then everything will be ruined.

"Fine, fine, fine!" exclaims Austin, just as the lights go out and I groan, things can only get better from here on out. "Fine," he repeats, more softly this time. "I'm all in; I've _always_ been all in. The playboy front I put up? Just another defense mechanism. Rejection and humiliation are two of my biggest fears, and this act seems to keep both at bay." At that point, he turns his head towards me. I can make out the faint curve of the rueful smile he's shooting my way. "Until I met you, of course. You just had to go and blast all my defenses out of the water, didn't you?"

I pretend to shrug modestly, "I try," but inside, my heart is hammering fast against my ribcage.

"The thing is," and here Austin adjusts himself so that he's directly across from me, "I don't want defenses around you anymore. I just want to be me, and I just want you to be you. And at the moment, I just want to kiss you."

And the next thing I know, I have been pulled up to my feet and pressed against the wall as Austin's fingers tangle themselves in my curls. My eyes are big and wide, as opposed to his closed ones. In a matter of mere milliseconds, however, my eyes flutter shut and my arms instinctively slide themselves around his neck, because _damn_, he is _good_.

The height difference between us (sigh, ten inches- I know, I'm short) is apparently too much for him, so he hoists me up against the wall until I'm on my tiptoes, our lips still locked the whole entire time. He's kissing me, _hard_, and I'm kissing him back just as fervently. I'm truly grinning now, and I've never felt more alive.

Of course, it would be our luck that the lights flickered on just at that moment. There os a moment of movement, then the elevator doors open. A concerned technician and the owner of the building are waiting for us outside, staring, quite flabbergasted, at our current state.

Quickly (and rather embarrassedly), we gather up our things and hurry out of the building. Once we're out of sight, we both start laughing elatedly. My hair is probably tangled and my lips are probably swollen and I'm certain my clothes are wrinkled, but none of that matters at the moment, because his hair is just as messed up, his smile is gloriously ecstatic, and his clothes are soaked through from the rain still pouring down. Mine should be, but his leather jacket has prevented too much damage, just another sign of how _Austin_ he can be.

"You know," he says conversationally, grabbing my hand and swinging it between us as we skip over puddles and scurry under overhanging doorways. "Now that we're a couple, there's some couple-y things I'd like to try."

"Oh?" I grin up at him. "Like what?"

"Kissing in the rain," he says brightly, pointing out to the downpour.

At that, I wrinkle my nose. "We're going to catch pneumonia, silly!"

Hearing my response, he smiles relievedly. "Thank god you have common sense, but I thought girls liked that kind of stuff!"

I raise my eyebrows. "In what shiny, delusional world do you live in where I'm a normal type of girl?"

His mouth is over mine in the next second and I can't really think straight anymore, and the only thing going through my mind as I raise up on my tiptoes is the sensation of floating on cloud nine; I don't ever want this to stop.

Against my lips, he murmurs the reply to my question, "The world where I'm really yours, and you're really mine, and we're really late for class."

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**A/N: Didn't quite turn out as I expected, but I hope you enjoyed that little fluffy piece :)**

**Reviews are greatly appreciated _*winkwinknudgnudge*_**

**~ Sabrina**


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